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The boy’s voice had stopped Marigold cold He was unloading sli instructions at another eold crouched behind a parked minivan and peered over its hood like a bad spy She was shocked at his youth He looked to be about her age, but the voice issuing froe-inappropriate Deep, confident, and sardonic It seemed far too powerful for his body Its cadence eary and dismissive, yet somehow a re

It was a good voice A cool voice

And it was the exact oldthem for herself, for fun, since middle school, so by the time she launched an official YouTube channel last year--her senior year of high school--she had the practice and talent to catch the attention of thousands of subscribers She was currently trying to catch the attention of one of the many animation studios down in Atlanta

She didadditional help from her friends (last year) or her coworkers at her mother’s restaurant (this year) But this film … it was important It would be her mother’s winter solstice present, and her ride out of town Marigold was cracking She didn’t kno er she could live here

She needed this boy’s help, and she needed it now

It was an unusually blustery night Marigold searched between the trees--free organic hot apple cider clutched between her hands, she was not immune to its lure--and strained her ears over the sounds of laughing children and roaring chain saws Under any other context, this co Here, it was positively merry Or it would’ve been, had her sto with horror-?"

There In the far corner Marigold couldn’t hear the custoh "No proble any of us dohen you’re ready"

She barreled toward his voice, knowing that the only way this would happen would be to place herself before him with as much speed as possible, so they’d be forced to interact Cowardly, yes But it was the truth She hurried through a row of seven-footers, recently cut and plump with healthy needles The boy rounded the corner first

She almost smacked into his chest

The boy startled And then he saw her face, and he startled again "You’ve been here before"

Noas Marigold’s turn to be surprised

"That hair" He nodded at the thick, stylish braid that she wore like a headband The rest of her coal-black hair was pinned up, too "I’d recognize it anywhere"

It was true that it was her signature look A sexy twenty-so with an eyebrow scar had once told her it looked cute She felt cute in it She did not feel so cute in this moment She felt like someone as about to upchuck

"You know," he said over her silence, "most people only have to buy a tree once"

"I live over there" Marigold pointed at the apartment complex next door "And I catch the bus over there" She pointed at the street beside the grocery store